FCC looks to change rules governing the Wireless Emergency Alert system
WASHINGTON – The Federal Communications Commission held its monthly open meeting on Nov. 19. The meeting was brief and without controversy, although public safety discussion was colored by recent terror attacks in Paris, Beirut and elsewhere.
The FCC voted unanimously to enhance the Wireless Emergency Alert system. Commissioner Mignon Clyburn said that while watching the Paris attacks unfold, “Our hearts collectively skipped a beat.” She applauded the commission for “instituting rules to keep pace with numerous technological advances, such as text-to-911 services.”
Clyburn further said tthe WEA is an important part of the FCC’s efforts to help keep Americans safe.
The WEA system is based on the idea behind the Cold War-era Emergency Public Broadcasting System. When an event threatens public safety, an alert is sent to smartphones, which will blare an alarm and flash a 90-character message across the screen.
The WEA system has proven successful in the past in scenarios including flash floods and Amber Alerts. The WEA Notice of Proposed Rulemaking was presented to the commissioners by retired Rear Adm. David Simpson, the FCC Bureau of Public Safety and the Homeland Security director, and outlined numerous proposed changes that would leverage LTE systems and make WEA more informative and effective. The proposed changes to the system include increasing the maximum length of WEA messages (to 360 characters) in order to convey more information.
New WEA protocols will also enable alerts to contain embedded phone numbers and URLs. The NPRM, if approved, would also create a new class of WEA alerts called “Emergency Government Information.” These alerts could include instructions such as boil water or take shelter during an emergency situation.
The NPRM also would require participating wireless providers to geo-tag alerts and deliver the messages to a more concentrated geographic area. The Boston bombing proved having a WEA system that can go out to an area as small and specific as a neighborhood can prove quite useful. The NPRM also wants to make it easier for state and local authorities to test WEA services and train personnel.
Commissioner Jessica Rosenworcel said, “Our security so often depends on connectivity,” adding the law establishing WEA that was first passed in 2006 “made good sense, and makes better sense today, with more mobile phones in this country than people. Technology changes, but the power of communication to keep us safe endures.”
The only words of caution came from Commissioner Michael O’Rielly, who said whatever rules the FCC adopts, it needs to make sure that they are not overly burdensome to the industry since the WEA is an optional system that carriers can opt out of at any time. O’Reilly did, however, cast his vote in favor of the proposal.
